MEDIA RELEASE: Renfrewshire sends 2000 tonnes less to landfill thanks to new recycling system

MEDIA RELEASE: Renfrewshire sends 2000 tonnes less to landfill thanks to new recycling system

Renfrewshire's new recycling system has seen a reduction of almost 2000 tonnes of household waste sent to landfill than the same period last year.

From January to July 2019, 15,187.75 tonnes were disposed of compared to 17,163.44 in 2018 - a reduction of 11.5%.

This coincided with a 42.6% increase in the amount of food and garden waste recycled and almost 7000 tonnes of blue and green bin recycling was diverted from landfill during this period.

This has enabled the council to post its highest ever recycling rate of 52.3% in the year to date.

Councillor Cathy McEwan, Convener of Renfrewshire Council's Infrastructure, Land and Environment Policy Board, said: "We thank everyone for their efforts in using the new recycling system and we hope to see even more success in the future in raising our recycling rate and reducing the amount of waste that goes to landfill.

"It's extremely important that we consider our environment and by taking the time to recycle you really are making a difference.

"We'll support you however we can to recycle more, and more efficiently, so please get in touch or visit our website for more information on what should and should not go into your bins."

The new collection service was introduced to more than 90,000 households in November 2018, with homes given an additional recycling bin for plastics, cans and glass, and the service will be rolled out to areas of Erskine which required a more tailored approach later this month.

Councillor McEwan added: "With a change of this size affecting almost every home in Renfrewshire, it was clear that there would be teething problems but we've worked tirelessly with residents to resolve any issues and the new service has now bedded in.

"We appreciate that changes such as this take time to become normality, but we will continue to be available for residents to answer any queries and ensure we are providing them with the best possible bin collection service."

The new service was supported by a campaign to reduce the amount of rubbish sent to landfill by encouraging residents to recycle and think about what they are placing in their general waste bin.

Information was sent directly to every home outlining the new collection system and a new section of the council website was created to support this and explain how it will affect residents and ensure they know what should and should not go into each bin.

In addition, residents can now go online to check their next four collections, download a calendar into their smartphone and sign up for email reminders which arrive the day before the next bin is due out.

Waste advisers are also available to discuss any issues that residents have and can be contacted via Waste Collection Team.